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Alex Ovechkin may want to play in the 2018 Winter Olympics, per The Washington Post’s Isabelle Khurshudyan., but Russian Hockey Federation president Vladislav Tretiak says the Washington Capitals forward needs to accept it won’t happen

“What is there for Ovechkin to do now? Nothing. Play for Washington,” Tretiak said in an interview with Russian news website R-Sport translated by The Washington Post. “He has to accept that.”

Capitals owner Ted Leonsis even told NHL.com that he’d allow star players like Ovechkin and Braden Holtby to leave the team temporarily for the Olympics if they wanted to.

However, who might want to go anyway but are going to be met with stiff resistance from various stakeholders., NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly recently told The Athletic that the NHL received assurances from the International Ice Hockey Federation that any players under contract with the league wouldn’t be allowed to play in the Olympics. That includes players like Ovechkin

This seems like a strong indication that even players who badly want to play in the 2018 Olympics won’t be allowed. There had been speculation about possible exceptions in certain cases where ownership approved, but it appears the NHL is trying to hold together without letting any players break ranks.